


Problems in the Beltway

by westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist



Category: The West Wing
Genre: F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2002-06-08
Updated: 2002-06-08
Packaged: 2019-05-15 12:34:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,146
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14790618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist/pseuds/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist
Summary: Political and Pregnancies problems arise.





	1. Problems in the Beltway

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

**Problems in the Beltway**

**by:** christina

**Disclaimer:** None of these characters belong to me. All the characters and the West Wing belong to NBC and Aaron Sorkin. 

**Category:** Romance, Josh/Donna  & Sam/Ainsley

**Spoilers:** I don't think there will be any major ones, but to be safe I'll say through Dead Irish Writers. 

**Rating:** TEEN

**Author's Note:** This story follows The Calm Before the Storm and is the ninth in my series. 

**The White House on the morning Josh & Donna returned from Hawaii**

_Josh's POV_

Ah, back to work. You might think I'm a little crazy, but I love the hectic atmosphere here. I plop down in my chair and pick up the note on my desk. 

"DONNA," I holler. 

"You bellowed," she says as she walks into my office. 

"Some coffee would be nice," I say. 

"Yes it would. Why don't you go get us some?" she suggests. 

"Very funny," I say. 

"Did you want something or did you just call me in here to amuse yourself, because if that's it, I have a huge stack of messages to go through that I ought to be working on," she says. Damn, all this work to catch up on my cut down on our play time. 

"Yeah, I got a note from Leo. He wants you at staff this morning. What time is that anyway?" I ask. 

"It's in an hour. Do you bring the presents?" she asks me. 

"Right here," I say indicating the bag under my desk. "And Leo's?" 

"Margaret called and said he's working on it right now," Donna says with a smile. She's very proud of what we were able to work out for Leo. It was just by chance that we ran into Jack Elder at dinner a couple nights ago. He recognized me and we started talking. When we mentioned Leo's morning obsession, he offered to do this for us. Leo's going to laugh when he sees it. 

Donna and I spend the next forty-five minutes catching up on the work we missed last week until my phone rings. 

"Josh Lyman," Donna says as she picks up the phone. "okay, we'll be right over," she says as hangs up the phone. 

"That was Leo. He wants us in his office right now," she informs me. I grab the bag of presents since the staff meeting will be in a couple minutes anyway and we head to Leo's office. When we get there, Margaret tells us to go right in. 

Leo is sitting at his desk working on his the daily New York Times crossword puzzle, but he sets it down when he sees us. 

"Welcome back you two," Leo says with a grin. "I trust you had a good vacation." 

"It was great," I say. 

"Glad to hear it. I just wanted to give you a heads up Josh. Mary Marsh is going to be on Capital Beat this afternoon and they want someone from the White House to debate her," Leo says. 

"I can do it," I offer. I catch Donna vigorously shaking her head no at me. She's worried I'll say something stupid like I did last time, but I really could do this. Before I start to explain why I can do this, Leo starts to speak. 

"I'm sending Sam to do it. He's less abrasive than you," Leo says. 

"But Leo…." I start. 

"No. It's settled. Sam's doing it," Leo says and when he uses that tone, no one argues. Leo sits back down to complete the crossword before everyone gets here for the meeting, informing us that he only has a couple more words to go. 

"Donna!" I hear CJ say as she walks in and wraps Donna in a hug. "You look fantastic! A week long tropical vacation suits you." 

"Yeah, tell that to Josh and maybe he'll take me there more often," Donna says with a smile. Toby walks in right then, his head buried in memos, and CJ suggests that a week in the tropics might be exactly what he needs to unwind. Toby comments that he doesn't have the time. Sam and Ainsley walk in next arguing about some policy issue. Ainsley breaks away from the argument as soon as she sees Donna. 

"Donna! How was Hawaii?" she asks as she wraps her in a hug. 

"Unbelievable!" Donna replies. Did you hear that? Unbelievable! I am so da man! 

"I want details later," Ainsley says with a grin. I wonder how many details these two women share. 

"Are the newlyweds back?" the President asks as he breezes into the room with Charlie and the First Lady. 

"Yes, Sir," I reply. 

"Glad to hear it. As much as it pains me to say it, you were actually missed around here. You understand that I mean Donna more that you," the President says with a smile. 

"We brought presents for all of you," Donna announces, but before she can continue, Leo interrupts her. 

"Number 97 down: White House Chief of Staff and the brain behind Big Block of Cheese Day. 10 letters," Leo says as he reads from his paper. Everyone gathers around Leo's desk to check it out. 

"Leo McGarry!" Sam says. No shit Sherlock. 

"Look, it even has a footnote at the bottom of the page explaining Big Block of Cheese Day," CJ points out. As they all ponder how this got in there, Leo catches Donna and I smiling. 

"You two did this?" he guesses. 

"Yeah. We happened to run into the editor Jack Elder at dinner and the fact that you always do the puzzle came up. We were having trouble finding a present for you and we thought you might like this better than something we could buy," I explain. Leo looks touched so I'm guessing we're right. 

"MARGARET!" Leo hollers. His bellowing for his assistant is the only one that can match mine. "Get me a frame for this," he says when she appears in the door. 

"Why don't we do the rest of the presents before staff," the President suggests. Sounds good to me. 

"Here you go Mr. President. It's a first edition," Donna says as she hands him the book on Hawaiian history. 

"This is great," he says as he thumbs through the book. "Josh, you'll have to sit next to me on the next trip so I can fill you in on what I learn from this book." Hopefully he'll forget about that plan before we leave on the trip. Before we can have more discussion about the trivia I may be forced to endure, I reach into the bad and retrieve CJ's present, a grass skirt. 

"I thought you might want to wear this the next time you do The Jackal," I say as I hand it to her. CJ gives me a look. "What? Donna looked really good in one," I say. 

"So did you Josh," Donna says with a laugh. Why does my wife feel the need to embarrass me? 

"You wore a skirt?" CJ says with a laugh. I told Donna it was not manly, but she wouldn't listen. 

"I have pictures," Donna assures her, much to CJ's delight. After everyone laughs at me in a skirt, we hand out the rest of the presents. When we're done with that, I assume that its time to start the meeting. 

"Not so quite yet. We all have presents for you too," the President announces as Charlie carries in a box. They all look like they are about to bust up laughing and I have no idea what's going on. Donna looks confused too so I'm glad I'm not the only on in the dark here. 

"We thought maybe you could decorate the baby's room with these," the President says. 

CJ is the first to pull something out of the box. She walks over to me and hands me a stuffed pig. 

"Gee thanks CJ," I say. She's always calling me a pig so I guess its fitting.

Toby is the next to pull something out of the box. He walks over and hands Donna a stuffed donkey. Leave it to Toby to pick the symbol of the Democratic party. Charlie is next and he hands us a stuffed cow. Everyone seems to be trying desperately to stop from laughing. I have to admit I really don't understand this one, but Donna is beginning to turn a little red. Ainsley hands us a goat which I am just glad isn't an elephant to confuse our child. Sam gives us a turkey and by this time Donna is completely red and looks mortified as she avoids my eyes. What the hell is going on? Leo hands us a chicken just as the light begins to dawn on me. These are all farm or barn animals. My friends are laughing at me, and Donna is avoiding my eyes. The President and First Lady hand each of us stuffed horses. 

"It seems there's been a lot of odd weather lately. A storm system began in March not supposed to culminate until January. This storm keeps growing larger and stronger. Apparently is all began in my barn. You two wouldn't know anything about that would you?" the President asks with a smile on his face and amusement in his eyes. Oh my God! I can't believe she told them about that night in the barn! I look over at Donna who is bright red and still not looking me in the eyes. 

"This happened in my barn, on my property, while I was President, just remember to name one of your sons after me," the President says with good nature. I'm incredibly embarrassed, but it could have been worse if he was pissed. 

"You're so lucky I promised never to hurt you," I tell Donna. 

"It just slipped out. I said a barn and Dr. Bartlet guessed which one," Donna says, obviously equally embarrassed that the President, Leo, Sam, Toby, and Charlie now know about our little escapade too. 

"Oh relax Josh," the First Lady tells me. "She's your wife. She has every right to share stories about you." 

Leo sense my discomfort and comes to my rescue by saying that we need to start the meeting. 

"Sam, I need you to go on Capital Beat to face Mary Marsh this afternoon," Leo says. 

"Sure thing," Sam says and the meeting starts. 

**Ainsley's Office**

_Sam's POV_

After the staff meeting, I walked Ainsley back down to her office. She just pulled back from our kiss holding her hands up to steady her head. 

"Ainsley, are you okay?" I ask with concern. 

"I just feel dizzy," she says as she continues to hold her head. 

"Are you hungry? Should I go get you food?" I ask thinking that maybe its hunger that has brought on this dizzy spell. 

"I don't know what's wrong. I'm sure its just a dizzy spell and it will pass," she says. 

"You sit down. I'm going to go get you something to drink," I say as I deposit her in a chair and hurry off in search of some juice. I grab her a bottle of apple juice and hurry back to her office. I walk in to find her sprawled across her desk. I walk to her side. "Ainsley, wake up," I say as I give her should a shake. She doesn't respond. I shake her a little harder but no response. Oh my God! I reach for the phone on her desk and as soon as the White House operator picks up I shout into it "We need paramedics in Ainsley Hayes' office right away! Oh my God, Ainsley wake up!" Please God, let her be okay! 

Sequel - "More Than They Bargained For" 


	2. Problems in the Beltway 2

**Problems in the Beltway**

**by:** christina

**Disclaimer:** None of these characters belong to me. All the characters and the West Wing belong to NBC and Aaron Sorkin. 

**Category:** Romance, Josh/Donna  & Sam/Ainsley

**Spoilers:** I don't think there will be any major ones, but to be safe I'll say through Dead Irish Writers. 

**Rating:** TEEN

**Author's Note:** This story follows The Calm Before the Storm and is the ninth in my series. 

* * *

**Ainsley's Office**

_Sam's POV:_

Where the hell are the god damn paramedics? I've been waiting for them and Ainsley is still unconscious. 

"Sweetheart, wake up," I plead as I kneel by her and shake her body, praying that she'll be okay. Secondly later the paramedics finally come through the door asking what's wrong. 

"She fainted and I can't get her up. She's pregnant," I inform them. 

"Sir, you need to step out of the way," one of the medics says as he push me out of the way and begins to check out Ainsley. I have never felt so helpless in my entire life as I do right now watching them work over her. 

"She's not responding. Let's get her out of here," one of them calls. They pick her up and lay her on the stretcher before hurrying it out of her office with me running along the side and desperately clutching her hand. 

"Out of the way! Paramedics coming through," one of the medics shouts as we rush through the corridors of the White House. 

"Oh my god! Sam what happened?" CJ asks as we pass her in the hall and she comes running after us. 

"She fainted and they can't wake her up," I tell her quickly. CJ looks stunned but I don't have time for that. "Tell Leo…." I begin. 

"Don't worry about it. I'll take care of everything here. You just do what you can for her," CJ assures me as I continue to rush toward the waiting ambulance. 

"One, two, three," the head medic calls and they all lift Ainsley into the ambulance. I start to climb in behind them as we rush to GW hospital with the medics still trying to revive Ainsley. 

When we get to the hospital, they wheel Ainsley right into the emergency room, but a hand stops me before I can follow. 

"Are you the husband Sir?" a nurse asks me as she blocks my path. I shake my head no before trying to push my way past but she stops me. 

"Are you a relative?" she asks. Again I shake my head no. 

"I'm sorry Sir, I can't let you in. It's a strict rule allowing family only back there. What is the nature of your relationship with the young lady?" she asks me. To hell with her rule, I'm going back there. 

"I'm the boyfriend. I'm the father of the baby she's carrying. I need to be there with her," I plead hoping that this will gain me access. 

"I'm very sorry sir, but the rule clearly states that only family is allowed back there," she informs me. 

"You can take your rules and shove them because I'm going back there and there is nothing you can do about it," I yell. 

"Sir, I need you to calm down or I'll be forced to call security," the nurse threatens. 

"CALL THE GOD DAMN SECURITY BECAUSE I'M GOING IN!" I holler as I try to push my way through before being restrained by security. Damn it! 

"Sir, we need you to calm down," one of the security guards insists. I don't think there is much of a chance of that happening. 

"I'm Sam Seaborn. I work for President Bartlet. She's Ainsley Hayes and she works for him too. I promise you there will be problems beyond your imagination for you if you keep me out here," I threaten them. God, this must have been how Donna felt when she first tried to get them to let her see Josh after he was shot. Luckily, the First Lady and Leo came to her rescue and saw that she got in despite the crappy family only rule. Donna and Josh were family then just as Ainsley and I are now even though the law would disagree. I know that if Ainsley were awake, she would insist that they let me back there, but she's unable to do that right now. 

The security guards don't take my treats seriously and think we must be low level staffers. They keep insisting that I calm down while dragging me toward a chair. I'm still struggling with the guards trying to convince them that I'm not crazy and that there will be consequences for treating me like this when Josh comes running through the door holding his cell phone. 

"Let him go in," Josh orders. "I'm Josh Lyman, White House Deputy Chief of Staff and the man you are holding is the White House Deputy Communications Director. I have President Jed Bartlet on the phone with an executive order that you let him through," Josh says as he thrusts the phone at one of the security guards. 

"CJ told me what happened. They gave Donna a bunch of crap on Christmas two years ago so I figured you might have similar problems," Josh explains quickly. 

"Hello," the paramedic says into the phone. He pauses for a moment before continuing. "Yes Sir we'll do that Mr. President. We're so sorry for the problem Sir. You may go on it," the man tells me. I immediately begin running into the ER as I hear Josh threaten the security that they better not give me any more problems. 

I rush through the room until I spot Ainsley. I grab her hand when I get to her side and ask the doctors what's going on. 

"She still hasn't regained consciousness, but we're working on it and hopefully she will momentarily," the doctor informs me. 

"What about the baby?" I ask hoping that its okay too. 

"We've hooked up a fetal monitor. The baby's heart beat is a little low, but that is to be expected since the mother fainted," the doctor says as she indicates the baby's heart monitor. One of the doctors holds something in front of Ainsley's nose a few moments later her eyes begin fluttering open. Thank God! 

"Ainsley, come on, open your eyes," I encourage as I run my hand on her forehead. 

"Sam," she says weakly as her eyes open the rest of the way. 

"I'm here," I say, no thanks to the rules and security guards. 

"What happened?" she asks as she takes in her surroundings. 

"You fainted in your office," I tell her. Concern shows in her eyes as her hands fly to her stomach. I know the question she is dying to ask but fearing the answer. "Don't worry, the baby is fine," I assure her and see the relief that my words bring. 

"Ainsley, we need you to remain laying down to help prevent you from fainting again. I have some questions I need you to answer so we can figure out a little better why you fainted. Firstly though I want to let you know that fainting is not that uncommon during pregnancy. You were out a lot longer than most though so we want to make sure everything is okay. How far along are you?" the doctor asks. 

"Four months," Ainsley and I answer at the same time. 

* * *

_Ainsley's POV_

Do you smoke?" the doctor asks. 

"No," I say as I try to remain calm, hoping that this fainting spell I seem to have experienced was no big deal. 

"Does your family have a history of miscarriages?" he asks. 

"None that I know of," I reply. I glance at Sam who looks incredibly worried and try to put on a brave face for him. 

"Do you have a history of being anemic?" the doctor asks. 

"No, my iron levels have always been fine," I say. 

"Okay, now I'm going to ask you about how you've been feeling the past few days. Have you been feeling dizzy?" he asks. 

"A few times," I say. I never thought it was a big deal before. 

"Any bleeding?" he asks. 

"No," I say firmly. I would have rushed right to the doctor if that had happened. 

"Have you been running a fever?" the doctor asks me. 

"I don't think so," I say although I never really checked. 

"Excessive nausea?" he asks. 

"No, my morning sickness ended a couple weeks ago," I say. 

"Any pain? Back pain? Leg pain? Abdominal pain?" he asks. 

"My lower back has been sore and right before I fainted I had a brief but strong pain in my stomach," I say. I glance at Sam who looks scared and squeeze his hand. 

The doctor takes a few notes and then announces that he is going to need to draw some blood. After he does that, he comes back to explain what's going on. 

"I'm running an hCG panal. Its also known as a Human Chorionic Gonadotropin panal. This tests hormone levels in your blood. These levels increase rapidly early in pregnancy and should peak at 80 days before falling by 10 to 30% after that. This table shows the range you should be in right now. High levels aren't bad, but low levels can have serious consequences," the doctor explains. Sam looks like he is afraid to ask what these consequences are so I bring myself to do it. 

"What do low levels mean?" I ask. 

"I don't want to frighten you," the doctor says. 

"Trust me doctor, I will be more frightened if you don't tell me. Please explain it to me," I plead. 

"Low levels are often a sign of Ectopic Pregnancy which means that the fertilized egg implants somewhere other than the uterus, usually the lining of the uterine tube, where it is far too small to support a pregnancy. Low levels often mean that you are at a high risk for having a miscarriage," the doctor explain. Oh God! I swallow hard as I digest this information. Sam looks equally frightened. 

"How long does this test take to get back?" Sam asks. 

"Only another minute or two," the doctor says and I find myself thankful that its such a fast test. 

"We're going to be okay," Sam whispers in my year. Yeah, but is the baby? I put my hands on my stomach as I send up a prayer for my baby's safety. Sam's hands join mine over my belly and we sit there like that until the doctor returns. Out hands entwine as the doctor begins to speak. 

"We just got the test results back. I'm sorry to tell you this, but you levels are low," the doctor says. 


	3. Problems in the Beltway 3

**Problems in the Beltway**

**by:** christina

**Disclaimer:** None of these characters belong to me. All the characters and the West Wing belong to NBC and Aaron Sorkin. 

**Category:** Romance, Josh/Donna  & Sam/Ainsley

**Spoilers:** I don't think there will be any major ones, but to be safe I'll say through Dead Irish Writers. 

**Rating:** TEEN

**Author's Note:** This story follows The Calm Before the Storm and is the ninth in my series. 

* * *

**The Hospital**

_Sam's POV_

"We just got the test results back. I'm sorry to tell you this, but your levels are low," the doctor tells us. Oh my God! Ainsley grips my hand as hard as she can and I see the worry and fear in her eyes. I know both of these emotions are matched in my own. I never imagined that something like this could happen to us. For some reason I've been living under the impression this whole pregnancy would be easy: her belly grows, some morning sickness, mood swings, then labor and out are baby comes. The doctor's words have just shattered my illusions. Ainsley begins to shake a little. 

"Please, don't worry yet. Your levels are low, but they aren't incredibly low. You're in the risk zone but not the imminent danger zone. We want to take you upstairs to check you out and try to figure out what's going on," the doctor says. Ainsley starts to move but the doctor stops her. "No, we need you to stay laying down. We don't want to have you moving around and risk another fainting spell," he says and she immediately lays down. I can see the tears start to well up in her eyes and I understand exactly how she feels. 

"Sam, I'm so afraid," she says in a soft, quivering voice as she clutches my hand. 

"Me too," I admit. "But we're going to be okay." 

"We're going to get Ms. Hayes into a hospital gown and take her up to the examination room…." the doctor begins but Ainsley cuts him off. 

"Sam comes with us," she says firmly. There is nowhere else I would be but by her side. 

"Of course. We'll just get you change and prepped and have him meet us up there," the doctor says but Ainsley doesn't want to let go of my hand. I think listening to the doctor would be fastest so I peel her hand from mine. 

"Ainsley, sweetheart, I promise I'll be right by your side, but let's listen to the doctor. As soon as your ready to start the examination, I'll be there. If we listen, things will move faster," I say. She understands and nods her said in compliance. I kiss her head and whisper that I love her before allowing the doctor to wheel her away and promise to be in the exam room in five minutes. 

I walk out toward the lobby to find the elevator. I can't help but give the nurse who tried to keep me out before a dirty look. As soon as I pass through the doors into the lobby, Josh comes jogging up asking if Ainsley is up and okay. 

"She's up, but she may have serious pregnancy complications. They're taking her up to the exam room right now," I say. 

"God, Sam, I'm so sorry," Josh says. 

"Her hormone levels are low and they're worried about a possible miscarriage," I say. "I don't know what's going to happen and I don't know what to say. There is nothing I can do to help. God, I've never felt this helpless," I say, venting my frustrations and worries to Josh since I need to stay strong in front of Ainsley for her sake. I slam my hand against the up button of the elevator, unfairly venting on it too. 

"Don't lose faith yet. You guys can still pull through this. If there is one thing I've learned with Donna's pregnancy, its that just being there, trying to understand, and telling her how much you love her helps. You're not a doctor and she knows that. Just be you. That's all she needs," Josh says, showing a sensitive side that I think only Donna normally gets to see. 

"Yeah, I'll keep you informed," I tell him as I board the elevator that just got here and head to the examination room. 

* * *

_Ainsley's POV_

Sam was true to his word. He was waiting in the examination room when they wheeled me in. Waiting impatiently, pacing across the room, but he ran to my side as soon as I was brought in. 

The doctor takes my blood pressure and heart rate before pronouncing that they are okay. He also checks the baby's heart rate too and fines that it is back to normal. I breath a sign of relief when I hear that. 

"I'm going to ultrasound you now to see if we are dealing with an Ectopic Pregnancy," he says as he pulls out a tube and rubs the gel on my stomach. Please, don't let it be an ectopic pregnancy. I've read about those and nearly always the baby dies, the mother even dies sometimes. 

I bite my bottom lip and clutch Sam's hand as the doctor presses the ultrasound device against my stomach. I second later, I hear a swooshing sound and an image pops up on the screen and we can see our baby for the first time. I send up a silent prayer that this won't be the last time and that I will be able to hold this baby in my arms in a few months time. I hold my breath as the doctor examines the image before us. 

"Its not ectopic pregnancy. The baby is right where its supposed to be," the doctor pronounces causing Sam and I to breath a simultaneous sigh of relief. Sam wraps his arms around me and I hear him breath the words "thank god" in my ear. My thoughts exactly. 

"Everything looks good in here actually. You've got yourself a very active baby," the doctor comments as Sam and I watch mesmerized by our baby squirming around, looking quite healthy. "You should be able to feel the baby move soon," the doctor informs me. Good, I can't wait until that day because then I will know my the movement that my baby is doing okay. 

"Yep, you've got yourself a healthy looking baby, active and big for its age. As long as we're looking, I can tell you the sex if you want," the doctor offers. 

"Well, we were going to find out later in the week, but I'd like to find out now," I say and Sam agrees with me. 

"You're having a boy," the doctor tells me. Sam and I smile as we look at our son for one last minute before the doctor turns the screen off. 

"Everything looks normal. Your hormone levels are a little low, but we're not going to worry too much about that. Its probably cause by other factors, but to be safe, I want to have your levels checked every 48 hours for this week and then twice a week after that until they go back up to the normal level. I'm going to give you a list of the types of foods you should be eating and the dietary amounts you need of each nutrient. You also need to make sure your getting more iron because your level was low and that may be part of the problem. Do you have a high stress job?" the doctor asks. Sam immediately begins nodding. 

"Well, I work in the White House," I say. Its stressful, but its not that bad. 

"I want you to take a couple days off and when you do return to work, you need to take it easy. Stress is bad for the baby. Stress can mess up your hormone levels and induce fainting spells. Do you work a lot of overtime?" the doctor asks and again Sam is nodding his head. Well, it's the White House and its not a 9 to 5 job for people with important jobs there. 

"Yeah, I usually don't get out of there until 8," I say. 

"Well, that needs to change. You need your rest," the doctor advises. 

"That can be arranged," Sam assures him and I know that he'll be on the phone with Leo about it within the hour. 

"I'm prescribing vitamins, rest, and a reduction in stress. If you are feeling dizzy, sit down right away. When getting up, get up very slowly to reduce dizziness. Right now it looks like this might have been stress-induced, but to be safe, I'm putting you on the risk list so your going to have a check up every week. If anything out of the ordinary happens, call this number, anytime of the day or night. You call if you have any pains at all, if you have a fever, or if you experience any bleeding," the doctor instructs before handing me a script for vitamins and a phone number to call should anything else happen and leaving. 

As soon as he leaves, I sit up, but slowly as he instructed. I wrap my arms around Sam and rest my head in the crook of his neck before letting tears of relief fall. 

"Thank God you're okay," Sam says as he hugs me protectively. After hold me in silence for a minute, Sam drops to his knees and says "and you too baby. Your mom and I are going to make sure you come into this world safely," Sam says before placing a kiss on my stomach. He's right though, we will do everything in our power to make sure that happens, that our son will be okay. 

* * *

**The Waiting Room**

_Josh's POV_

I hate the hospital. I've never been here for a good reason. I was here when I was shot, the most unpleasant experience of my life. They gave Donna a bunch of shit about being about to see me while I was unconscious. It's a good thing for the staff that I was unconscious or I would have raised some serious hell because her face was the first one I wanted to see when I opened my eyes. I was here again when I slammed my hand through a window on Christmas and again they gave Donna crap but that time they heard from me on the issue. 

Now I'm hear while my best friend waits to hear about the future of his baby and the possibility that Ainsley will miscarry. I think the staff will always remember me after that reprimand I gave them for not immediately letting him go to Ainsley's side. 

I saw Sam a few minutes ago and he told me that there is a serious possibility that Ainsley will have a miscarriage. Donna called just after that as she was driving to the hospital to see how Ainsley was doing. I couldn't bring myself to tell her over the phone so I just told her that she had woken up and that they were examining her right now. Donna is already petrified about having a miscarriage that I just didn't know how she's take the news that it's a serious possibility for her friend. I don't know how Sam is holding it together as well as he is because if that was Donna, I would be a wreak. 

I send up a prayer that Donna won't have any problems and that Ainsley will get through hers okay. 

"Josh!" I hear Donna's voice call and I turn to see her running toward me. God, how do I tell her this. 

"What's going on? How is Ainsley? How's the baby?" Donna asks in a rush. 

"Donna, sit down for a minute and I'll tell you," I say as I take a deep breath and hope that Donna can handle what I have to tell her. 


	4. Problems in the Beltway 4

**Problems in the Beltway**

**by:** christina

**Disclaimer:** None of these characters belong to me. All the characters and the West Wing belong to NBC and Aaron Sorkin. 

**Category:** Romance, Josh/Donna  & Sam/Ainsley

**Spoilers:** I don't think there will be any major ones, but to be safe I'll say through Dead Irish Writers. 

**Rating:** TEEN

**Author's Note:** This story follows The Calm Before the Storm and is the ninth in my series. 

* * *

**The Hospita**

_Donna's POV_

When CJ came running through saying that Ainsley had fainted and was going to the hospital, Josh immediately headed for his car to ensure that they let Sam back with Ainsley since he remembered all the problems they gave me. 

I was planning on running out after him but Leo called me into his office for a few minutes so I am just now getting to the hospital. 

"Josh!" I call as I rush into the waiting room, hoping that Ainsley is okay. "What's going on? How is Ainsley? How's the baby?" I ask in a rush. 

"Donna, sit down for a minute and I'll tell you," Josh tells me. I sit down, filled with worry when I see the look in his eyes. There is something he's afraid to tell me. Josh sits down, takes a deep breath, and then takes my hand. 

"Josh tell me. What ever it is, I can handle it," I assure him, wanting to know what's going on. 

"Donna, Ainsley might have some serious problems," Josh begins. 

"Oh my God! What kind of problems?" I ask. 

"They don't know yet. Sam said her hormone levels were low and they are worried about a possible miscarriage," Josh says as he softly rubs my back to try to comfort me. Poor Ainsley. Poor Sam. 

"Oh Josh, this can't be happening," I say as I start to cry. For once I think that these tears are not a result of my crazy pregnancy hormones. Why isn't this as easy as people make you think it is? 

"Listen," Josh says as he takes my chin in his hand, "we don't know for sure. They are up in the exam room now. She could be fine," Josh says. I would never have guessed it a year ago, but Josh is pretty good at this husband stuff. 

I put my hands on my stomach trying to connect with my baby while praying for the safety of Ainsley's. Josh and I sit there in silence for a few minutes. Josh knows that I'm thinking about our baby's safety too, but he assures me that there is nothing to worry about until we are told otherwise. 

After about 20 minutes, we see Sam wheeling Ainsley out. Josh and I hurry over to them to find out what happened. 

"Everything is okay for now. The baby is right where its supposed to be," Sam says with a smile of relief. Thank God! 

"What was the cause of the fainting?" Josh asks. 

"The doctor thinks it was a combination of not enough iron and stress from her job," Sam informs us. Uh oh! I can see Josh's ears perk up at the word stress. I can see the wheels in his head going and chances are he's going to be more protective than ever which will absolutely drive me nuts. 

"So are you taking off of work until the baby is born?" Josh asks. I really hope he doesn't want me to do that. I will if the doctor tells me I need to for the safety of my baby, but if I am able to work, I want to. 

"No," Ainsley says firmly. 

"She's going to continue working, but will be leaving promptly at five, resting during lunch, and having her assistant do more of her running around," Sam clarifies. That doesn't sound bad. I'd kind of like that arrangement. 

"I'm taking her home to rest for the rest of the afternoon," Sam says. Oh, that reminds me! 

"Josh, I talked to Leo right after you left. He says that due to these unforeseen events, you are going on Capital Beat this afternoon," I tell him. 

"You mean I get another chance to debate Mary Marsh on TV?" Josh says with a grin. Oh god, please help him. 

"Yes, but Josh you need to be very careful. That woman hates your guts. Leo says not to pick any fights," I remind him. 

"Donna, how many times do I have to tell you, I'm as sweet…" Josh begins. 

"As pecan pie, yes I know you can be, but with Mary Marsh, you're not," I point out and he damn well knows I'm right. 

"Donna, the woman is immune to my charm," Josh complains. 

"Exactly! So don't get cute. Just make your point and watch your mouth," I warn because he has a tendency to not do that around Mary and I don't want him to almost get himself fired again. 

* * *

**The set of Capital Beat:**

_Josh's POV_

Donna thinks I'm going to screw this up. She keeps reminding me to watch my mouth. We're in the wardrobe room right now as Donna straightens my tie one last time. 

"Josh, I'm begging you to please watch what you say," Donna pleads. 

"Donna, trust me. It'll be fine," I try to assure her, but she doesn't seem to believe me. "Come on, let's go," I say as I grab her hand and lead her out since the show is going to start very soon. I give Donna a peck on the lips before leaving her behind the cameras and taking my place at the table on the set. 

"Josh, good to see you again. Congratulations on your marriage," Mark says as he shakes my hand. 

"Thanks. Great to see you too Mark. How are you Mary?" I ask, trying to play nice as Donna instructed me to. 

"I'm fine, but I must admit I'm a little curious about something," Mary says. 

"What's that?" I ask, plastering a false smile on my face. 

"I'm wondering if your wife over there will be having a premature baby, if you fudged the dates of when you found out about the pregnancy so that it will look premature when its really a full term baby because it was conceived before you actually started dating," Mary says. Well, since the cameras are off, I guess the gloves are too. I glance over at Donna who's looking as pissed as I've ever seen her. I am about to tell Mary off, but a stage hand begins counting down from 10 until the show starts. I take a few deep breaths to calm down before the cameras come on. 

"Good Evening, and welcome to Capital Beat. Tonight our guests are White House Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman and Christian Coalition Spokesperson Mary Marsh. Welcome to you both," Mark says. 

"Good evening Mark. It's a pleasure as always to be here," Mary says with a fake smile for the cameras. 

"Always good come on your show Mark," I agree. Somehow I think that's the last time Mary and I will be agreeing tonight and let me just say it would be much more enjoyable if I was debating anyone other than Mary.

"Tonight we'll be debating the merits of the School Prayer bill sponsored by your organization Mary," Mark says. Merits? What Merits? "Tell us a little about the bill Mary," Mark says. 

"As you know Mark, our children are being denied their basic right to free speech. They are forbidden from saying a prayer to their creator while standing in a school. This bill would correct that egregious wrong," Mary says. 

"Josh, the White House is obviously in favor of free speech so how do you explain the administration's opposition to this bill?" Mark asks as he turns to face me. 

"Very easily Mark. This isn't a matter of free speech….." I begin but Mary cuts me off. 

"Of course it's a matter of free speech! You're limiting what they can and can not say. This bill would institute a daily prayer that children could join in on or not as they choose," Mary claims. 

"This isn't about free speech," I insist. "This is about the one kid that doesn't want to participate in the daily prayer and is beaten up for it at recess. Its about protecting that kid." 

"Who's to say that that would happen? I think this is another insight to the hypocritical Bartlet we are finally getting to see. He claims to be religious, but prevents children from praying," Mary accuses. 

"He's not preventing them from praying, he's just enforcing the limits on the places where they can do so. The establishment clause says that the state can't establish a state religion and any daily prayers would doubtlessly be Christian based. Also, just because something is protected under one law doesn't negate the fact that it's illegal under another! You have free speech, but you can't slander someone. We have to protect the rights and safety of all children," I argue. 

"Oh, you're protecting the rights and safety of all children are you? What about all those babies you allow to be aborted every year with the blessing of the White House? How are you doing protecting the rights and safety of those children?" Mary asks. Oh God, I walked right into that one. 

"That's a another issue for another time," I begin, not wanting the abortion debate right now, but Mary will not be deterred. 

"You talk about protecting right of a woman to choose over the right of the baby to be born. The only good thing I can say about you and the situation you've gotten you and your secretary into is at least you didn't decide to exercise your right to choose that your always defending" Mary says. I can feel my blood boiling and I don't know how I'm going to control it. I want to rant and rave but I can't because there is a camera pointed at me. 

"First of all she's not my secretary, she's my assistant but more importantly, she's my wife and second of all, we never, not for one second, considered an abortion. We defend the right to choose for those who aren't ready for a baby, who won't care for it, and who can't afford it. We can and will do all those things" I say firmly. 

"I thought you liberals wanted to hand out all this money to the poor. If you're doing that, shouldn't these girls be able to afford the babies they've created?" Mary argues. 

"And you bible toting conservatives claim to be compassionate, but I can't see it. You want to sentence some fourteen year old year who's been raped to deal with the pregnancy not of her choosing in what might equate to a hell on Earth? Where's the compassion in that? I thought good Christians didn't judge each other or are you above that law since you have no problem passing judgement on me?" I throw out without thinking. 

"And we need to take a commercial break. Thanks to both of you. When we return, we'll be talking with two senators about Campaign Finance Reform," Mark says. 

"And we're out," I hear a crewman say. I throw my microphone off and glare at Mary who looks very please with herself since she succeeded in getting me to explode and speak without thinking again. 

"Mary, next time, tell your organization to send someone else. You baited him and you purposefully got off topic. Josh, I'm sorry it got that far," Mark says. 

* * *

_Donna's POV_

Oh my God! Josh did it again, but this time, I can't blame him. That woman is a bitch. As soon as the cameras are off, I rush over to Josh. He looks pissed at Mary for pushing him and himself for falling for it. I glare at Mary briefly before wrapping Josh in my arms whispering that what he said wasn't that bad and CJ will be able to spin it. See, I can be the supportive wife when I try. 

"Well, isn't that just sickeningly sweet. Poor Josh shot his mouth off again. Luckily he can go bury his sorrow in his secretary," Mary sneers suggestively. My hand is itching to slap that woman but I know I can't. Then before I can respond, I hear a voice behind me do it for me. 

"She's not an secretary, she's the Deputy Deputy Chief of Staff," I hear a male voice say and turn to see Congressman Matt Skinner standing there as he is one of the guests slotted to follow Mary and Josh. 

"Congressman Skinner…" Mary begins, but he cuts her off. 

"Don't bother Mary. You just lost my vote on that pet bill of yours, and you need not lobby my office anymore because it won't get you anywhere. Josh, if you get any bad press for your comments today, give my office a call and we'll try to help you out by issuing a statement," Matt offers. Mary storms off leaving the three of us with a minute before the show comes back on. 

"Thank you for your support Congressman Skinner," I say. 

"Donna even if we are in public, its Matt, and your very welcome although your thanks are unnecessary. Josh called you that once and I thought it was about time Mary knew what a big job you do," he says. 

"Thanks Matt," Josh says as they shake hands. "If you ever need my support, you just let me know." 

"Well, I've got to go do the show. We should all get together sometime," Matt says. Yeah, I think we may have to have him over for a thank you dinner. 

"Come on, let's head back to the White House and see how bad this comes out on the news," Josh says and we walk toward the car with him arm around my shoulders. 


	5. Problems in the Beltway 5

**Problems in the Beltway**

**by:** christina

**Disclaimer:** None of these characters belong to me. All the characters and the West Wing belong to NBC and Aaron Sorkin. 

**Category:** Romance, Josh/Donna  & Sam/Ainsley

**Spoilers:** I don't think there will be any major ones, but to be safe I'll say through Dead Irish Writers. 

**Rating:** TEEN

**Author's Note:** This story follows The Calm Before the Storm and is the ninth in my series. 

* * *

**The White House 2 weeks after Josh's Appearance on Capital Beat**

_Josh's POV_

I'm so glad that I didn't get in too much trouble for my showing on Capital Beat. I tried really hard to control my mouth, but she baited me and I fell for it. Donna was surprisingly supportive, much more so than after I created my secret plan to fight inflation. When I said that I hoped CJ didn't want to murder me or more precisely have my head on a platter as she warned me before the show, Donna assured me that CJ would probably me more understanding. 

CJ didn't yell she just told me to be more careful next time. I think she understood why I was so pissed, especially after she heard what Mary said about Donna and I even if it would cause her a few headaches as she tried to fix it. She first day was hard for CJ to spill. Mary Marsh held a Christian Coalition Rally in DC by the Capital. The news clips showed them yelling and holding signs saying "Josh Lyman says he can't see our compassion. Let's get louder and show it." Of course their definition of compassion doesn't match mine. Oh and a personal favorite of mine, "Watch out Lyman, the Bible toting conservatives are back." 

CJ did a wonderful job of defending me and the administration, but the questions kept coming. Things only got worse when Anne Starke's boss got up and spoke at the rally, calling Mary an example to us all and urging the passage of the school prayer bill. That's when all hell broke loose. He attacked the White House and President Bartlet and it looked like we were going to have a full out partisan fight which meant trouble for us since the Republicans have a few vote majority in Congress. That's when Matt Skinner stepped to the plate. I made it know to his party that on this one they didn't have his support. He called upon moderates in his party to join with him in voting with the Democrats and denounced Mary as a hypocrite. He said that it was the Christian Right and their platform that was turning the younger generation away from the Republican party and that they couldn't let these reactionaries hijack the party. 

That began the fighting within their party lines. The Speaker threatened to cut off all party money from Matt's reelection campaign. This worried Matt, but to his credit, he never wavered in his position. I'll see to it that there is no difficult Democratic challenger running in his district to give him some extra support that he may need to due his support of the White House. The battle of wills went on for a couple days, but Matt convinced 10 of his fellow moderate Republican Congressmen to vote with him. 

Today is the final vote on the school prayer bill so I'm gathered with the President and Senior Staff to watch the votes come in. 

"Congressman Matt Skinner," we hear announced on the TV. 

"No," Matt replies, voting against the Republican sponsored bill. This resulted in cheering from all in the room. 

"Josh, does Skinner have any pet bills that I can help pass?" the President asks, obviously wanted to return the huge favor Matt has just given us. 

"He has an education bill he's working on," I say, knowing that education has always been a top priority with Matt. 

"Charlie, send Congressman Skinner an invitation to dinner at the White House so we can discuss this bill of his. Nancy, call Skinner's assistant and set up a day when I can travel with him to his district to help promote it. Josh, work with the Democrats on the Hill so that he gets enough votes to pass it," the President says. 

"Of course Sir," all of us reply as our eyes remained glued to the TV for the final no vote we need for the bill to officially fail. When it comes, there is a cry of triumph. Sam kisses Ainsley, who is back at work now, as I grab Donna and swing her around. 

"Here's to biparisanship, at least on a limited scale," CJ says as she hold up her glass of wine. 

"I'll second that," Sam says with a grin before leaning in to his Republican girlfriend again. 

"Great Victory in the evening folks, victory is mine," I announce. Well, okay on this one the credit goes mostly to Matt, but I still need to announce that victory is mine since I had a part in it. 

"Would you like me to bring you the finest muffins and bagels in lands?" Donna asks with a grin. 

"Well," I lean in and whisper suggestively in her ear, "since it's the evening and we are about to leave, I can think of something much better that I'd like to have." 

"And what would that be?" Donna asks with a smile. 

"You," I whisper back. 

"Let me get my purse," Donna agrees. She is back momentarily and grabs my hand as we start to make our way out. 

"Hey, you guys are cutting out of the victory party early," the President says as he spots us at the door. 

"I think they have their own private victory party planned Sir," CJ says with a grin. 

"Ah, more horsing around Josh?" the President asks, causing everyone to have a laugh at my expense. 

"Don't you ever get tired of barn jokes Sir?" I ask since I seem to hear them everyday. 

"I'll be tired of them when you get tired of hearing your own voice," the President says. Damn, that day is never going to come. "Go on and celebrate with your wife Josh, you two earned it," the President say a second later. 

"Yes Sir," I say since that is one order I am more than happy to take. 

Sequel - "More Than They Bargained For" 


End file.
